


Speculation About Akashi’s (and the GOM’s) Narcissistic Personality Disorder

by andchipzz



Series: There's Something About Akashi [2]
Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Akashi Seijuurou Character Study, Character Study, Gen, Mental Health Issues
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-28
Updated: 2017-05-28
Packaged: 2018-11-06 00:00:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11024334
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/andchipzz/pseuds/andchipzz
Summary: There are some or signs of NPD explained within the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and how they associate with Akashi’s behavior pre and post switching between his two egos (as per described in the manga).This is more of a research note and reference about Akashi's mental health issues (and also other Miracles) particularly on identifying on whether or not Akashi has an NPD. It is very important to identify whether Akashi has NPD, because it will affect the whole story and the possibility of him getting a treatment. If Akashi does have NPD, then there is no point for Kuroko to help him and it will be a more painful journey for everyone.





	1. Does Akashi Have a Heart?

**Author's Note:**

> The information in this are based on http://www.halcyon.com/jmashmun/npd/dsm-iv.html

What we have to note is that, the appearance of Akashi’s alter-ego, as he stated it himself, has been a reaction for the change in his teammates. As the others keep winning and improving, he felt left out, and fear of abandonment is said to trigger the permanent switch.

> Nearly everyone has some narcissistic traits. It's possible to be arrogant, selfish, conceited, or out of touch without being a narcissist. The practical test, so far as I know, is that with normal people, no matter how difficult, you can get some improvements, at least temporarily, by saying, essentially, "Please have a heart." This doesn't work with narcissists; in fact, it usually makes things worse. 

Before the switch, Akashi had been a kind and helpful person; no one would think he did not have a heart. He was very helpful and caring toward his friends. He took care of their meal and their lifestyle to make sure they keep healthy all the time. He was very encouraging when he saw Kuroko’s nervousness in Kuroko’s first match.

However, since switching to his alter-ego, Akashi has shown this behavior, peculiarly during the match against Ogiwara team. At that time, Kuroko asked for Akashi to take a pity for their to-be-opponent (because Ogiwara is Kuroko’s best friend). Rather than having a heart, Akashi instead encouraged his teammates to make it as a game.

However, what we have to remember, it has been Kise who first suggested to his teammates, so to say, to make the basketball game more fun for the five of them, by making a bet out of it. Akashi and the others have been willing to join in this game. Furthermore, no one corrected this kind of behavior: the authority figure just let them do what they want, within the five of them, they did not see the point on taking basketball seriously anymore.

As the captain, Akashi has encouraged such behavior (he shouldn’t have). Maybe in his point of view, it couldn’t be helped: there has been a rule in Teiko about the minimum 20 scores that each first string players had to gain in each game they play, there was also the motto “100 games, 100 victory”. The pressure for him might make him thing that it would be more important to keep his teammates interested in playing, rather than making them behave themselves. 

As a leader, he has given up on his teammates.


	2. Does Akashi Have a Sense of Grandiosity?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grandiosity: An exaggerated sense of self-importance (e.g., exaggerates achievements and talents, expects to be recognized as superior without commensurate achievements)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The information in this are based on http://www.halcyon.com/jmashmun/npd/dsm-iv.html

 

> ... they always fill in their gaps (which make up just about the entirety of their visible life) with bits of behavior, ideas, tastes, opinions, etc., borrowed from someone else whom they regard as an authority. Their authoritative sources, as far as I know, are always people they've actually known...

It seems that in many ways Akashi’s alter-ego has borrowed ideas heavily from his father and from the authority in Teiko, who think that winning is everything, the winners are always right, etc.

Winning has become his safety net and his mantra. He becomes assured that to be proven right and to gain respect, he has to win. Interestingly, Akashi’s confidence about this mentality, at least in basketball and in other aspects of his life, does not come from delusion of grandeur. It is just that, so far, no one has proven him that the opposite is true: that you can be right even though you lost.

He insists that his win is preordained, because he never once experience losing. For him winning is like breathing. Unless someone shows him that he can lose, he will never be capable in thinking otherwise.

With that kind of mentality, you would expect that winning is a given to him. Maybe his family's influence helps him in achieving many accomplishments in life. Maybe because he came from a rich family, he is a boy who has everything, spoiled by the power that he has.

If you understand how Japanese wealthy family lives and add the information that Akashi's father is very strict and has very high expectation on him, you will not think like this. The wealthy, in Japan, has a financial burden in the form of inheritance tax. That is why, rather than spoiling him, it is more possible that his father will expect him bear his own burden, and prepare him for the worst.

> Because their inner life is so restricted and essentially dead, it doesn't contain images of how to live a full life -- these things are not important to them, they expect others to look after day-to-day chores, they resent wasting their specialness on common things, they don't put their heart into their work (though they'll tell you how many hours they put into it), they borrow their opinions and preferences and tastes from whomever strikes them as authoritative at the moment.

There has never been an instance that shows Akashi as the kind of person described on the above paragraph. Instead, Akashi has been well known as a very hard working person, who unfailingly bears all of his burdens and tasks which will make even adults complain bitterly. Akashi never brags to other people about how much work he has to do in a day; that work for him is a given.

It seems, that Akashi is more of a type of person who will learn to do anything by himself, because it is in his nature to anticipate everything and wants to do everything perfectly. In the game, it is shown that he can cook—a skill that most people will deem as menial activities!

He always gets full marks in all subjects. He can play violin and piano professionally. He plays strategy board game and quite an expert in it that in Teiko’s festival, he went around chess, shogi and similar kind of strategy board game club to challenge everyone and won loads of prices. In the manga, it is shown that even though he has been acknowledged as a very strong player, and his team is well known as a very very strong team, he is still the most hard working athlete in the Rakuzan.

Despite his apparent intelligence and talent, all of those skills and achievement (good scores in _all_ subjects, professional skills in violin and piano, umatched skill in strategy board game among his peers, basketball skills, and cooking skills) show his _dedication_ on achieving _true perfection_  in all possible area rather than perceived perfection. While intelligence and talent can help you have an early start among your competition, it is only the people who puts their heart and thus dedication who will keep making achievement.

> The simplest everyday way that narcissists show their exaggerated sense of self-importance is by talking about family, work, life in general as if there is nobody else in the picture. Whatever they may be doing, in their own view, they are the star, and they give the impression that they are bearing heroic responsibility for their family or department or company, that they have to take care of everything because their spouses or co-workers are undependable, uncooperative, or otherwise unfit. They ignore or denigrate the abilities and contributions of others and complain that they receive no help at all; they may inspire your sympathy or admiration for their stoicism in the face of hardship or unstinting self-sacrifice for the good of (undeserving) others. But this everyday grandiosity is an aspect of narcissism that you may never catch on to unless you visit the narcissist's home or workplace and see for yourself that others are involved and are pulling their share of the load and, more often than not, are also pulling the narcissist's share as well. Another example is claiming unusual benefits or spectacular results from ordinary effort and investment, giving the impression that somehow the narcissist's time and money are worth more than other people's. Common conspicuous grandiose behaviors include expecting special treatment or admiration on the basis of claiming (a) to know important, powerful or famous people or (b) to be extraordinarily intelligent or talented.

From this description, it can be argued that Akashi does not have grandiosity. Rather than expecting special treatment based on his position, intelligent, or talent, Akashi expects people to acknowledge him because of his achievement, which is winning in all kinds of competition. 

Have there been an instances in which he tells people that his team win because of him? Does he brag about his importance within the team? This did not happen even during his time in Teiko. He saw his teammates at that time as people with individual achievement.

It is true that he used his Rakuzan team as his vehicle for success, but he acknowledge the importance of their role in the Rakuzan wins. In a very twisted way, he 'encourage' them with his threat of gouging his own eyes, because he knows that without his teammates, he will not be able to win against Shuutoku. So it is possible, during his Rakuzan year, Akashi's behavior degrades so much that he becoming closer to somewhat with an NPD. However, this is negated by his reaction towards his team when they become spirited after that threat. He has shown a particularly approving expression as if in recognition of his teammates cooperation.

> Outstanding performers are not always modest, but they aren't grandiose if their self-assessments are realistic. The grandiose claims of narcissists are superficially plausible fabrications, readily punctured by a little critical consideration. The test is performance: do they deliver the goods?

Truth be told, within the manga itself, it has been shown that Akashi's self-assessments are constantly realistic. He does not fabricate the truth of his achievement. No one can accuse or criticize him as someone who is not outstanding or perfect. People genuinely respect and fear him; some of his behavior are annoying, but they bear with it because they want to be in a good standing with him. This is because, even though his methods are sometimes questionable--which mostly a reflection of his youthful carelessness--he always deliver the goods.


	3. Lack of Empathy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Empathy: the ability to recognize and interpret other people's emotions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The information in this are based on http://www.halcyon.com/jmashmun/npd/dsm-iv.html

> Lacking empathy is a profound disturbance to the narcissist's thinking (cognition) and feeling (affectivity). Even when very intelligent, narcissists can't reason well. They don't understand the meaning of what people say and they don't grasp the meaning of the written word either -- because so much of the meaning of anything we say depends on context and affect, narcissists (lacking empathy and thus lacking both context and affect) hear only the words. And, frankly, they don't hear all the words, either. They can pay attention only to stuff that has them in it.
> 
> In clinical terms, empathy is the ability to recognize and interpret other people's emotions. Lack of empathy may take two different directions: (a) accurate interpretation of others' emotions with no concern for others' distress, which is characteristic of psychopaths; and (b) the inability to recognize and accurately interpret other people's emotions, which is the NPD style. Self-described narcissists who've written to me say that they are aware that their feelings are different from other people's, mostly that they feel less, both in strength and variety (and which the narcissists interpret as evidence of their own superiority); some narcissists report "numbness" and the inability to perceive meaning in other people's emotions.

Referring to these descriptions, I think rather than having an NPD, it is more likely that Akashi shows characteristics of psychopaths.

There has been no hard prove that Akashi does not pay attention to other people. Instead, it is more likely that he pays very careful attention to all of them. There are some instances in which his capability to carefully observe and pay attention to other people is shown, such as:

  1. When gathering his teammates for the first time after graduating from Teiko, he states that he sees something in them that alleviate his worry. This is related to the Oath that they have made in their third year of middle school: Akashi’s worry might be his ex-teammates depression. By seeing them in person, Akashi can see fighting spirit in his ex-teammates’ eyes. This has assured him that they are in a good condition, ready to compete, feeling challenged, and are not depressed.
  2. True that he throws scissor to Kagami as test for Kagami's reflex and reaction time. This, on the surface, seems like a very impulsive and dangerous behavior. However, as stated by Kagami later, Akashi has predicted that Kagami will be able to avoid that attack. Akash has complete trust in Kagami's skill.
  3. His ability to cultivate talents in other people and arrange a strategy that utilize everyone’s potential to the fullest. This is completed with the skill of his host-ego, the Perfect-Rhythm Plays, which draws out his teammates' true potentials. This implies that he is capable in seeing the strength and weakness of people around him.
  4. His Emperor Eyes, that can predict the movement of his opponents, actually implies that he is able to understand the strength and weakness of people just by reading their body language.
  5. One of the most interesting moment, is Akashi’s surprise and reaction when facing Furihata for the first time. Despite his blank expression, he has been shown as having some... concerns about Furihata’s ability to challenge him. He does not take advantage of Furihata’s weakness immediately, that Mibuchi Reo has to remind him to attack. He might be thinking “How pitiful! What should I do with this guy now?”.



All of these, regardless of some intances which describes his arrogance and his stubborness to listen to other people, expresses Akashi’s _complete understanding of human behavior_. His reactions and his decisions are more of a response to how other people behave, while at the same time he arranges them to do things he wants them doing.

However, he uses this understanding for his own gain. He plays mind games to his opponents and his teammates, and successfully affects their performance. Akashi uses people’s emotion to move them as he moves his pawns. It is what makes him a very good playmaker, a perfect—ideal—point guard. He is a frighteningly good strategist and tactician.

What Akashi does to his opponents is psychological warfare. Who won’t be apprehensive in facing someone like Akashi? Akashi shows himself capable in making people kneel before him. He defeats the Uncrown Kings in a 3-in-1 match. He talks about the fact that he always wins, and his records do show that he always wins. He led the greatest team of middle school basketball player ever known, and then follow up on leading the greatest team of high school basketball player.

Opponents with weak mentality will immediately collapse even before the battle begin. Those with strong mentality will try, but will face an even more frightening psychological and physical warfare during match.

Akashi is able to interpret other people’s emotion, but has no concern with it. Thus, it can be concluded that at least in this aspect, Akashi has psychopathic trait and not narcissistic trait.

If Akashi can be treated from his psychopathic tendencies, he will be a great, unbeatable general (at least according to Sun Tzu):

>  
> 
> All warfare is based on deception.
> 
> Hence to fight and conquer in all your battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.
> 
> If you know the enemy and know yourself you need not fear the results of a hundred battles.
> 
> The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.
> 
> Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.
> 
> The general who wins the battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle is fought. The general who loses makes but few calculations beforehand.
> 
> Opportunities multiply as they are seized.
> 
> Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.
> 
> For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill.
> 
>  

 


	4. Chapter 4

> Narcissists lack a mature conscience and seem to be restrained only by fear of being punished or of damaging their reputations -- though, again, this can be obscure to casual observation if you don't know what they think their reputations are, and what they believe others think of them may be way out of touch with reality. Their moral intelligence is about at the level of a bright five- or six-year-old; the only rules they recognize are things that have been specifically required, permitted, prohibited, or disapproved of by authority figures they know personally. Anyhow, narcissists can't be counted on not to do something just because it's wrong, illegal, or will hurt someone, as long as they think that they can get away with it or that you can't stop them or punish them (i.e., they don't care what you think unless they're afraid of you).

Who knows what Akashi’s moral intelligence is? The manga never goes as far as that.

However, Akashi will never cheat or use personal connection to get what he wants. No mater how you doubt his morality, he sees himself as having honor and dignity to win with his own skills. He will never do things that makes his opponents unable to compete, such as causing permanent or temporary injury which will affect his opponent’s performance. He will never pay the judge to support him, because he is very confident of his own ability.

For him, psychological warfare is a test for his opponents mental fortitude. On the other hand, causing debilitating injury to his opponents dishonors the whole game and reduces his satisfaction of winning the game.

Meanwhile, he is not afraid to damage his reputation: he attacks Kagami in an open space, he threatens himself in front of everyone, he belittles people who is against him. Akashi’s alter-ego, who is not nice a nice person, does not pretend to be a nice person. For Akashi, reputation is not about masking his personality into a well-liked person. For Akashi, reputation is about being proven excellence by winning in everything. Because he always wins, he is always right, and thus he can do anything he wants. Once he lost, it means he will be proven to be wrong.

That is why you will never see him being compared with the likes of Hanamiya Makoto, who shows himself as a two-faced person.

Furthermore, after the switch, Akashi became someone who creates his own rule. It is his own requirements, permissions, prohibitions, that limit him from doing anything. He became his own authority figure. It means that if he refuses to do things, it is because it is against his own principles.

He states it directly to his father’s face and also everyone else’s, that he will eliminate anyone who gets in his way, even if it is his parents. This statement symbolizes the moment he seized authority on his own person and refused to be below any other people’s.

Akashi follows his own whim and creates his own rule, and if he seems to accept what you want him to do, it is not because he thinks you have authority over him. It is because he just does not care enough to change it.

From this perspective, it is understandable why Rakuzan coach, Shirogane Eiji, lets Akashi does anything he wants. This should not be, since this will aggravate his behavior. Instead, he should be shown that it is important to respect others.

Unfortunately, Akashi has been taught to see right or wrong by winning or losing. It can be assumed, then, that he is so used to fight people for victory to be able to obtain his rights. Right or wrong, truths or lies, for him it is not a written fact. It is the winner who determines how the world run. The winner is allowed to do anything he wants, because to win means to be right.

You can imagine what kind of education he has been given. How many times he has to face particular situations which indoctrinate him to this way of thinking? Losing and winning can come in many forms; maybe Akashi often lost or see other people being lost in negotiations or in bargains with his father?

However, you can see that at the same time, despite his willfulness and his rebelliousness, Akashi is a dutiful highly achieving student (as he becomes Student Council President). He really does what he wants.

 

 


	5. Envious and Competitive

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The information in this are based on http://www.halcyon.com/jmashmun/npd/dsm-iv.html

> Narcissists are envious and competitive in ways that are hard to understand (...) They are constantly comparing themselves (and whatever they feel belongs to them, such as their children and furniture) to other people. Narcissists feel that, unless they are better than anyone else, they are worse than everybody in the whole world.

We knows that Akashi is a highly competitive person. However, he does not seem to be envious. He does not really care about materialistic things: he does not brag about his father, his wealth, his intelligence, his talent, his luck, his teammates/friends, or any other accomplishments that he does not think as his own. He does not think that he have any weakness.

However, the only way he scores himself is by his own achievement: his wins and his perfect scores.

We never know whether losing means that he is worse than everybody in the world. What we know is that Akashi thinks that because he always wins, it means that he is better than everyone else. He is not grabbing in a dark to define his greatness. Rather than his possessions, it is his personal achievement that defines him.

I think if there is one thing that Akashi is envious of, it will be the freedom his peers have to be carefree.

Before the switch, Akashi has always maintained excellency in all areas to be called as deserving in the Akashi's household. He achieves perfection and improve himself not because he wants to be better than anyone else, but as the only way to be approved by his family. At school, he thought that he found freedom. However, Teiko's toxic environment has disproved him of that notion, and instead enhanced the same mentality that he is taught at home. 

Akashi's struggle to maintain his victory is not a story about someone who fights to become the best or to gain acknowledgement,  _but that is just how he lives_. He knows no other way to live his life; he does not know what is a win-win solution in negotiation. 


End file.
